Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Off-topic: Fresh Air on "extraordinary renditions"

Here is a Fresh Air interview of Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen, who was picked up by Americans as a suspect and then sent for interrogation to Syria as part of the program of extraordinary rendition. This is a sad and sorry state of affairs. Please check out this interview. Here is a brief intro of Maher Arar:

Maher Arar, a telecommunications engineer with dual Canadian and Syrian citizenship, was detained during a stop-over in JFK Airport in 2002 and deported on suspicion of being a member of Al Qaeda. He wound up in a Syrian prison where he was locked up and beaten for almost a year before protests from his wife led to his release.

Arar is pursuing a federal lawsuit charging that the United States government violated his constitutional right to due process as well as his right to choose a country of removal other than one in which he would be tortured, as guaranteed under the Torture Victim Protection Act.

3 comments:

I'm surprised they eventually listened to his wife. Glad, but surprised.

I think because she was dealing with Canadian authorities...

Interesting link about the Atheon - I will read more about it. I usually recoil when I hear the "Temple of Science" - they should use a different word, otherwise it sounds New-Agey. At the same time, I appreciate the idea of Cosmic background radiation on a stain window. Thanks for the link.

What is Irtiqa?

Irtiqa is a Science and Religion blog. It tracks and comments on news relevant to the interplay of science & religion - with a focus on scientific debates taking place in the Muslim world. Irtiqa literally means evolution in Urdu. But it does not imply only biological evolution. Instead, it is an all encompassing word used for evolution of the universe, biological evolution, and also for biological/human development. While it has created confusion in debates over biological evolution in South Asia, it provides a nice integrative name for a blog that addresses issues of science & religion. For further information, contact Salman Hameed.

The blog banner is designed by Muhammad Aurangzeb Ahmad. You can find all his creative endeavors at Orangie.

On Muslims and Evolution

Salman Hameed

Salman is an astronomer and Associate Professor of Integrated Science & Humanities at Hampshire College, Massachusetts. Currently, he is working on understanding the rise of creationism in contemporary Islamic world and how Muslims view the relationship between science & religion. He is also working with historian Tracy Leavelle at Creighton University to analyze reconciliation efforts between astronomers and Native Hawaiians over telescopes on top of sacred Mauna Kea in Hawaii. He teaches “History and Philosophy of Science & Religion” with philosopher Laura Sizer, and “Science in the Islamic World”, both at Hampshire College. Salman and Laura Sizer are also responsible for the ongoing Hampshire College Lecture Series on Science & Religion, and you can find videos of all these lectures below. Contact information here.